Since this was brought up, I thought of an experience I had in Houston, TX. A few years ago, when I was an auditor for a multi-national corporation, whose international office is in Houston, I was to attend an Auditors' College, in other words, learning how to be a crook. Two others accompanied me at the time. One girl was a data-entry clerk and the other was a Taiwanese girl, in management training. I dressed in a Tahari suit, the other two dressed in casual jeans and shirts. When we arrived at the Wyndham, the other two checked in before me. Our company paid all expenses. They were given a cubbyhole of a room, with a slanted ceiling and crowded. I was given a large suite. They could not understand why I was given such a large, spacious, well appointed room. I sat down and explained to them that one must dress for the occasion. When one is on a professional trip, one must dress accordingly. They never learned. The data-entry clerk never made auditor, and the manager-in-training never made management.

When on a cruise, I always take two formal dresses. And, when seated for dinner, I am always appropriately dressed. Like Jeff, I enjoy those formal occasions and feel very comfortable in formal as well as business-casual clothing. That's why, when I left that company, have retained all of my formal wear and well as my suits.

Donna (who never wears T-shirts or shorts when traveling, unless I am at the pool)

In the context that "clothes make the man" (or woman), the modulation of what you wear goes a long way towards adjusting people's attitude towards you. Donna is absolutely correct in her assessment of her experience at the hotel. When I was in business, if I was sitting in my office, I could dress any way I was comfortable (it was my casino, after all). When I visited government customers, I had to dress respectfully, but not "above" them. They might where an open collar and no tie, and I might wear a suit, but the suit would be, say a muted brown and the tie not too flashy. If I was meeting with my peers, then the full Master of the Universe body armor went on with severe navy blue suits, fancy cuff links, spit polished shoes, starched white shirts and ties meant to make a statement.

When I roam around in foreign countries, I tend to wear long black pants, a white "buttoned" shirt and black leather shoes. I do not wear sneakers, shorts, a tee shirt and a baseball hat. I am polite and don't scream at my friends. In short, I masquerade at not being an American.

If I'm working in my shop, I can dress like a slob. If I am with people, there is no reason to start out with a strike against me by dressing down.

My experience this summer matches Donna's. On our our trip, we stayed at 17 different hotels. We were upgraded (sometimes to an eye-popping extent) in about half the hotels, I suspect partly due to what we dressed like (though being "friendly" to the check-in clerk never hurts).

Jeff is so correct in his statement of how to treat the desk clerk. I find no reason to be harsh or unfriendly. After all, it is their job to make sure we are comfortable. Fortunately, lately, especially in FL, I am treated like a queen.

As a note, if you are particularly impressed with the service, be sure to obtain the employees' name(s). Then, go onto Trip Advisor and make your comments. Of course, this holds true for bad service as well.

Zephyhills, FL does not have any, what I call, 4-5 star hotels. The Microtel is the nicest in that small town and in the small towns between Zephyrhills and Tampa. I ALWAYS give my comments on Trip Advisor and remember the outstanding employees' names. Due to the excellent service, the cleanliness of the rooms, the complimentary breakfast, the appointments in the room and the fact that it is a central entry as well as an elevator, I give this Microtel a 3-star rating. It is far above those rated two-star (Motel 8, etc.).

I found out that with this particular MicroTel franchise, if an employee's name is mentioned in the critique, that employee is given a $10 bonus.

I agree one needs to dress appropriately for the occasion. That's why in the previous thread I asked if such occasions (formal) were commonplace on cruises. I certainly wouldn't try to show up to one in shorts and sandals!

At work I wear "office casual". At least here in the southwest that is a collared shirt and pants/slacks (NOT jeans or cords). I work as an engineer and spend a fair amount of time in the lab. Suit and tie is not expected.

When I travel domestically, I dress for the climate. If it's cold, I'm not wearing shorts! My preferred attire is either cargo pants or cargo shorts, and a decent t-shirt (or "hoodie" if it's cold, though I'll probably have my parka also). The cargo pants are purely practical. They allow me to go without fanny pack to carry money, etc, plus they are great for holding my lens cap, filters, and whatever other stuff I'm swapping on/off my camera. My camera bag is a backpack (my rig is too heavy to carry any other way, except maybe a roller but that doesn't work well if I'm hiking). I often have a hat of one sort or another, but I'm old enough to have been raised to remove the hat when stepping indoors. Which I do.

The one time I went to Europe I had a jacket (it was brisk, but not cold), my camera pack, cargo pants (not shorts), and comfortable walking shoes. (I just pulled up some photos from 1poorlady to verify). After a time I began wearing a hat that 1poorlady bought for me there (it was an Oktoberfest in Munchen cap). The t-shirt under the jacket was a simple travel t-shirt (most of my t-shirts are from places I've been, and they are all tasteful...no crude jokes, just something representative of where I got it).

The comfortable walking shoes are not negotiable. Even at work. I have a history of knee problems, and "dressy" shoes are death for me. No stability, no shock absorption, no support. But that's a whole 'nother thread. :-)

Actually, when I spoke about being "friendly" to the check-in clerk, I meant that I take care of the $10 (actually more likely 10-20 Euro) bonus discreetly given when I ask about the availability of a free upgrade :-)

I do, however, occasionally comment on hotels/restaurants if especially pleased or pi$$ed on Trip Advisor. A couple of examples:

When I roam around in foreign countries, I tend to wear long black pants, a white "buttoned" shirt and black leather shoes. I do not wear sneakers, shorts, a tee shirt and a baseball hat. I am polite and don't scream at my friends. In short, I masquerade at not being an American.

When I was living in Vienna, we were instructed by the consulate to "blend in" after 9/11. We already were doing so out of respect for the local culture, but we took extra care after 9/11, especially around the predominately Muslim areas. This came in handy after the Coalition went into Afghanistan. There was a large anti-American demonstration near our apartment that I couldn't avoid. I walked right past the demonstrators carrying signs that said "Death to America" about 100 meters from my front door.

It was amazingly easy to pick out the Americans in the city, both from their dress and from their behavior.

I've been on several cruises and have never taken a "formal dress". I do take a long black skirt and a "dressy" blouse or top and that is what I usually wear to the Captain's Dinner or whatever the most formal dinner is.

While I don't particularly mind getting "dressed up", I go on a cruise to relax and IMHO, I am much more relaxed when I'm not wearing formal attire.

I should add that on most cruises I've been on, there have been some folks "gussied up", particularly at the Captain's Dinner, but for the most part, folks seem to dress more casually, even for that event.